Top 2017 Free Agents By Position 3.0: Defense
The initial wave of NFL free agency is now complete, and while many of the league’s top available players are now off the board, there are still plenty of quality options still on the open market.
Listed below are our rankings for the top 15 free agents at each defensive position. These rankings aren’t necessarily determined by the value of the contracts – or the amount of guaranteed money – that each player is expected to land in free agency. These are simply the players we like the most at each position, with both short- and long-term value taken into account.
Restricted and exclusive-rights free agents, as well as players who received the franchise tag, aren’t listed here, since the roadblocks in place to hinder another team from actually acquiring most of those players prevent them from being true free agents.
We’ll almost certainly be higher or lower on some free agents than you are, so feel free to weigh in below in our comments section to let us know which players we’ve got wrong.
Here’s our breakdown of the current top 15 free agents by defensive position for 2017:
Edge defender:
- Dwight Freeney
Elvis DumervilChris Long- Mario Williams
Connor Barwin- Paul Kruger
- Trent Cole
- Erik Walden
- Jason Jones
Darryl TappDevin Taylor- Eugene Sims
- Howard Jones
Wallace Gilberry- Sam Acho
The pass rushing market has been completely depleted during the first week of free agency, as 14 of our original top 15 edge players have now been franchised, signed, or, in the case of DeMarcus Ware, retired. As such, a 37-year-old with 15 NFL seasons under his belt is now the best pass rusher on the market. Dwight Freeney played on roughly a third of the Falcons’ defensive snaps in 2016, and posted three sacks and 18 hurries. Capable of playing in either a 4-3 or 3-4 scheme, Freeney can still help out a club on the cheap.
Three players on this list — Elvis Dumervil, Connor Barwin, and Eugene Sims — were released by their respective clubs last week, meaning they won’t count against the compensatory formula if and when they’re signed. Dumervil, now 33, was hampered by injuries last season but still earned strong pass-rushing marks from Pro Football Focus. Barwin, meanwhile, wasn’t a good fit in Jim Schwartz‘s 4-3 defense, but he should flourish if he signs with a team running a 3-4 look. So far, he’s met with the Bengals (who use a 4-3) and Rams (3-4).
Chris Long has already indicated he won’t be returning to the Patriots, indicating he wants to join a roster where he’ll earn more playing time. Erik Walden, too, won’t re-sign with his 2016 club (the Colts), but he has taken a visit with the division rival Titans. Further down the list, Howard Jones has also met with at least one club, as he was hosted by the Jets on Tuesday. Jones, 27, is recovering from a torn ACL, but did post five sacks in five starts last season.
Interior defensive line:
Johnathan HankinsDontari Poe- Jared Odrick
- Vance Walker
- Sen’Derrick Marks
Ricky Jean-Francois- Roy Miller
Al WoodsTony McDaniel- Cullen Jenkins
Frostee RuckerCam ThomasJohn Jenkins- Tyson Jackson
Tyson Alualu
Although top-flight players such as Calais Campbell and Brandon Williams have already been signed, the crop of interior defenders remains strong at the top. The buzz around Johnathan Hankins has been virtually non-existent, as the only club that’s been even tangentially linked to the 25-year-old is the Redskins. He’s one of the youngest free agents on the market, and therefore is probably looking for a massive payday. But the lack of interest around Hankins may be an indication that he’s simply asking for too much money.
The same issue could be surrounding Dontari Poe, although he’s not wanting for meetings around the league. He’s visited with the Colts, Falcons, Jaguars, and Dolphins, while the 49ers and Raiders also reportedly have some level of interest. Clubs may have concerns about Poe’s lingering back issues, and he might have to accept a one-year deal in order to prove he’s healthy and willing to provide full effort.
The remaining defensive interior players are mostly over-30 veterans, with names such as Tony McDaniel, Cullen Jenkins, Frostee Rucker, and Tyson Jackson still looking for new deals. While most of these guys can still play, they may have to wait awhile — possibly into the summer — before signing on with their next club. Jared Odrick (Patriots) and Vance Walker (Bears) have both taken visits, but the most intriguing lineman here may be Sen’Derrick Marks, who offers a good amount of pass rush from the interior.
NFC South Notes: Bucs, Falcons, Panthers
The Buccaneers and impending free agent wide receiver Vincent Jackson have discussed a potential return, but the 34-year-old could retire, writes Jenna Laine of ESPN.com. “We did have conversations with Vincent,” general manager Jason Licht said Wednesday. “I have the utmost respect for him. Everybody in the organization does. In my mind, in head coach Dirk [Koetter’s] mind, in the owners’ minds, he’ll be a Buc for life. So whatever happens happens, but we’ll always want Vincent to be around the organization.”
Jackson has been with the Buccaneers since 2012, and he started 16 games in each of his first three seasons as a member of the club, but he has endured back-to-back knee injury-shortened campaigns. The six-time 1,000-yard man has combined for just 15 appearances since 2015.
Regardless of whether the Buccaneers re-sign Jackson, they’re going to target “playmakers” this offseason, Licht revealed. Entering free agency, only three teams have more cap space than the Bucs.
More from the NFC South:
- Falcons GM Thomas Dimitroff said wide receiver Taylor Gabriel and guard Ben Garland will be tendered as RFAs (Twitter link via Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com). He did not specify what level, however. Gabriel was the far bigger contributor of the two last year, when he averaged 16.5 yards per catch on 35 receptions and combined for seven touchdowns through the air and on the ground. Garland appeared in all 16 of the Falcons’ regular-season games, but he didn’t start any.
- Dimitroff also announced that the Falcons will let defensive tackle Jonathan Babineaux become an unrestricted free agent after 12 years together, D. Orlando Ledbetter of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution writes. Conversely, the Falcons are trying to re-sign fullback Patrick DiMarco (Twitter link). Babineaux, 35, has totaled 185 appearances, 133 starts, 27 sacks and 10 forced fumbles in Atlanta, which selected him in the second round of the 2005 draft. He’s coming off the eighth 16-game season of his career, in which he picked up six starts and 22 tackles. DiMarco, a four-year Falcon, has three 16-appearance seasons in a row under his belt. He made eight starts in 2016.
- Panthers GM Dave Gettleman told reporters on Wednesday that tackle Michael Oher is still in the league’s concussion protocol. This means the Panthers could be in the market for a starting left tackle. Oher has been dealing with a brain injury since September and only played in three games last year as a result. The eight-year veteran is under contract through 2019.
- Reserve defensive end Darryl Tapp made it clear Wednesday that he wants to re-sign with the Saints, relays Josh Katzenstein of NOLA.com. Tapp’s agent and the Saints have engaged in discussions about a new deal. The 32-year-old journeyman just finished his first season in New Orleans, where he started in two of 16 appearances.
- As of last month, the Buccaneers hadn’t held contract talks with soon-to-be free agent running back Jacquizz Rodgers. However, the team would “love to have” him back, Licht stated (via Kevin Patra of NFL.com). Rodgers, 27, put up 560 yards on 129 rushes (4.3 per carry) and scored two touchdowns last season.
Zach Links contributed to this post.
NFC Notes: 49ers, Munnerlyn, Saints, Eagles
Recently, Kyle Shanahan expressed a desire to steer clear of a stopgap quarterback, but Matt Barrows of the Sacramento Bee notes that with so much uncertainty surrounding the 2017 college crop of QBs, the 49ers have to invest in a veteran to potentially be their 2017 starter. Barrows writes Shanahan will look to sign Brian Hoyer or Matt Schaub (or possibly both). Each worked with Shanahan for a time, with Hoyer starting the bulk of the games for the 2014 Browns and Schaub spending time with the new 49ers coach with both the Texans and Falcons. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard the 35-year-old Schaub’s name linked to San Francisco as a bridge-type passer, either. The 31-year-old Hoyer, though, figures to draw more interest after producing as a middling starter the past two years.
Here’s more from the NFC.
- Captain Munnerlyn awaits re-entering the free agency scene, with the Vikings cornerback tentatively expecting to test the market for the second time in his career. The 28-year-old corner would enjoy a return to Minnesota but appears to acknowledge that’s not a given. “Hopefully they value my position, value my talent and bring me back,” Munnerlyn said, via Andrew Krammer of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “I’m an older guy, I want to win. I definitely want to win. In Minnesota, I definitely feel like we have a chance to win.” The seasoned slot specialist will be set for his ninth season. He profiles more as a player who will score a medium-length contract, as he did when he signed three-year Vikings pact in 2014, on a market housing more highly touted UFAs.
- The Saints will look to upgrade their pass rush, Sean Payton told the team’s website. “It’s a must. We’ve got to find a pass-rusher,” Payton said. “Now, whether that comes from free agency or that comes from the draft, we have to be better at affecting the quarterback. Last year if you took hurries, sacks, pressures – a study of all three things that can happen with a rush – we were in the bottom third of the league and that has to get better.” The Saints ranked 27th last season with 30 sacks. Cameron Jordan remains under contract, but New Orleans has Nick Fairley (6.5 sacks last season) looming as a UFA and no surefire answer opposite Jordan. No other defensive end recorded two sacks, but promising rookie defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins accrued four despite missing much of the season with a broken leg.
- One veteran who served as part of the Saints’ defensive end equation wants to continue playing. Darryl Tapp would prefer to continue his career on a contending team, Alex Marvez of the Sporting News tweets. Tapp, 32, said he might re-sign with the Saints, although it’s not known if the interest is mutual, and is eyeing two more seasons before retiring. The veteran defensive end finished with just a half-sack last season but graded out reasonably well despite being a late-summer signing, coming in at 44th on Pro Football Focus’ edge defender rankings.
- While agreeing with Howie Roseman that adding aging skill-position targets around Carson Wentz doesn’t make much sense, NJ.com’s Eliot Shorr-Parks writes the Eagles should keep their present veteran-laden offensive line in front of Wentz. Jason Kelce surfaced as a cut candidate earlier this offseason, while the Eagles have approached perennial Pro Bowler Jason Peters about taking a pay cut entering his age-35 season. PFF and Football Outsiders considered the Eagles line a top-10 unit, and with Lane Johnson figuring to be available for more games in 2017, the group should help further. But Kelce, and possibly Peters, could be cap casualties — something Shorr-Parks categorizes as a “massive risk” for the Eagles — as a result of Philadelphia’s spending spree last year. Kelce’s only set to count $6.2MM against the Eagles’ 2017 cap, but Peters stands to comprise an Eagles-high $11.7MM. Philly is projected to have barely $9MM in cap space.
Saints Sign Darryl Tapp, Travaris Cadet
After being cut this weekend, a pair of Saints are returning to the active roster. Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate tweets that the Saints have signed defensive end Darryl Tapp and running back Travaris Cadet. The team has also placed defensive tackle Sheldon Rankins on the injured reserve.
Tapp joined the Saints in July after having played the past two seasons with the Lions. The 31-year-old, who has been in the league since 2006, has never missed more than five games in a season, and he’s compiled 27.5 career sacks in ten NFL seasons. Tapp played in all 16 games with Detroit in 2015, finishing with 19 tackles and two sacks.
Cadet re-signed with the Saints in March. The 27-year-old spent the 2015 season with the Patriots, 49ers, and Saints, finishing with 28 yards on 11 attempts. He also hauled in 16 catches for 212 yards and a touchdown.
Rankins, a defensive tackle out of Louisville, was the Saints first-round selection in this past year’s draft. The rookie was expected to compete with Nick Fairley, Tyeler Davison, and John Jenkins for playing time.
Saints Move Roster To 53
The Saints have now announced their full list of transactions that bring them down to 53 players.
Cut:
- OL Khalif Barnes (Twitter link via Nick Underhill of the New Orleans Advocate)
- OL Tyrus Thompson (Twitter link via Herbie Teope of NOLA.com)
- OT Tony Hills (Twitter link via Underhill)
- FB Austin Johnson (Twitter link via Underhill)
- S Trae Elston (Twitter link via Joel Erickson of the Advocate)
- DE Bobby Richardson (Twitter link via Underhill)
- CB Brian Dixon (Twitter link via Mike Triplett of ESPN.com)
- C Jack Allen (Twitter link via Underhill)
- K Connor Barth (Twitter link via Underhill)
- RB Travaris Cadet (Twitter link via Underhill)
- TE Garrett Griffin (Twitter link via Erickson)
- DE Darryl Tapp
- DL C.J. Wilson
- WR Jordan Williams-Lambert
- G John Fullington
- LB Jeff Schoettmer
- WR Jake Lampman
- C Marcus Henry
- LB Davis Tull
- DE Chris McCain (story)
Placed on IR:
Barnes signed with the Saints last Sunday, meaning his stay in New Orleans lasted less than a week. In 11 NFL seasons, the 34-year-old has seen action in more than 150 games (117 starts) with the Jaguars and Raiders. Barnes lost his starting job in Oakland last season, but still appeared in 14 games.
Saints Sign Darryl Tapp
10:01am: New Orleans confirmed the move, via the team’s website.
9:05am: The Saints auditioned Darryl Tapp last month and look to have seen enough from the veteran defensive end. New Orleans signed Tapp this morning, according to Field Yates of ESPN.com (on Twitter) as likely competition for a potential rotational defensive line job — a capacity the 31-year-old performer is familiar with filling.
To make room for Tapp on their 90-man roster, the Saints cut tight end Jack Tabb, per Adam Caplan of ESPN.com (Twitter link).
Tapp spent the past two seasons with the Lions on one-year deals, serving as a backup on the edge. He occupied that same role in stints with other NFC teams previously. Tapp’s lone run as a steady starter came for the late-2000s Seahawks before he landed with the Eagles, playing in Philadelphia’s 4-3 scheme from 2010-12, and settled into his second-unit role.
The former second-round pick in 2006 will join his fifth NFC franchise and attempt to latch on with the Saints in a less-conventional manner. He signed with Detroit in March of 2014 and 2015, respectively. Although Tapp hasn’t started more than two games in a season since doing so in 2009 with Seattle, he played in 16 in each of the past two seasons with the Lions and represented a solid run-stopping presence.
Roster Resource details the Saints have a fairly thin group behind Cameron Jordan as they transition back to a 4-3 scheme full-time in an attempt to recover from a nightmare defensive season. Obum Gwacham, Bobby Richardson and third-round pick David Onyemata reside on New Orleans’ roster as possible options opposite Jordan.
Tabb tore his ACL in training camp last year after arriving in New Orleans as a UDFA earlier in 2015.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
Saints Audition 3 Notable Veterans
THURSDAY: 11:12am: Meachem is back out on the field today and continuing to audition for the Saints, Evan Woodbery of The Times-Picayune tweets.
WEDNESDAY, 3:54pm: Meachem didn’t practice today because of a foot injury, writes Katherine Terrell of NOLA.com. He remains in the running for a contract.
12:02pm: There’s no sign of Meachem at Saints practice, but the other tryout guys are back today, Christopher Dabe of The Times-Picayune tweets. That could be an indication that Meachem is not in the team’s plans, but we’ll have to wait for further developments.
TUESDAY, 4:58pm: The Saints tried out nearly a dozen players on the first day of their minicamp Tuesday, according to Evan Woodbery of NOLA.com. Notably, receiver Robert Meachem and a pair of veteran defensive ends – Darryl Tapp and Matt Shaughnessy – were among those who auditioned.
Meachem previously worked out in April for the Saints, and if he signs with them, it would be his third tenure with the club. New Orleans used its first-round pick (27th overall) in 2007 on Meachem, who went on to catch 141 passes and 23 touchdowns there before signing with the Chargers in 2012. After an uninspiring season in San Diego, Meachem rejoined the Saints, picked up just 23 receptions and two scores in 26 games from 2013-14, and hasn’t played since. The Saints aren’t exactly loaded at wideout beyond Brandin Cooks, Willie Snead and second-rounder Michael Thomas, however, so it seems the soon-to-be 32-year-old Meachem will have a legitimate chance to crack the roster if the team signs him.
Tapp, meanwhile, is a 10-year veteran who spent the previous two campaigns in Detroit and appeared in all 32 of its regular-season games – mostly as a reserve. Tapp logged only one start with the Lions and recorded 2.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. Two of those sacks and a pair of forced fumbles came in 2015 for Tapp, whom Pro Football Focus (subscription required) ranked 78th out of 110 qualifying edge defenders – placing him ahead of Saints reserve DE Kasim Edebali (91st) but behind Obum Gwacham (58th). Tapp graded out well against the run, which – like everything else – was a major problem for the Saints’ porous defense last season.
Shaughnessy, like Meachem, has drawn past interest from the Saints, who auditioned him in October and last month. He also worked out for Arizona prior to its playoff game against Green Bay in January, but the Cardinals didn’t sign him. Shaughnessy played with the Cardinals from 2013-14 before sitting out last season. In 75 career games (48 starts), the 29-year-old has accumulated 18.5 sacks – a personal-best seven of which came with the Raiders in 2010.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
NFC Notes: Panthers, Vikings, Saints, Falcons
Panthers coach Ron Rivera admits that Fletcher Cox‘s massive new deal with the Eagles doesn’t help the Panthers’ cause in trying to lock up Kawann Short, Bill Voth of Black and Blue Review writes.
“This is the hard part right now is what’s going on in the league,” Rivera said. “I think some of these contracts are unbelievable as far as what I’m seeing and hearing.”
Word is that the Panthers may not be willing to go above $15MM/year for their standout defensive tackle. Cox, meanwhile, will average nearly $17.2MM per season on his new deal with a great deal in the way of guarantees early on in the pact.
Here’s more from the NFC:
- The Vikings can’t seem to find the right counterpart for Harrison Smith at safety, writes Ben Goessling of ESPN.com, who lists Michael Griffin, Andrew Sendejo, Anthony Harris, Antone Exum, and Jayron Kearse as contenders for the job. Right now, there’s no word as to whether the Vikings could look out-of-house to help bolster the group. Griffin, 31, is the most experienced of the bunch by far, and given that he excels in coverage, he might be the favorite to line up opposite Smith. “One thing I try not to do, especially in OTAs where we’re not in pads, is try to jump to some kind of conclusion of who should be the starter,” said head coach Mike Zimmer of the competition. “I’ll kind of let that play out in camp.”
- Veteran defensive end Darryl Tapp tried out for the Saints on Tuesday, as Evan Woodbery of The Times Picayune tweets.
- The Falcons are trying out wide receiver Donatella Luckett, according to Vaughn McClure of ESPN.com (on Twitter).
- UDFA tight end Ben Braunecker has a real good shot to make the Bears‘ roster, Adam Caplan of ESPN.com tweets. Braunecker was seen working with Chicago’s second-team offense during OTAs.
- The Bears are trying out tight end Ryan Taylor and defensive lineman Marquise Jackson, according to Brad Biggs of The Chicago Tribune (Twitter link).
Lions Re-Sign Darryl Tapp
Coming on the same day that we learned the Lions won’t use their franchise tag on Ndamukong Suh, the team’s latest defensive line update is bound to be overshadowed. However, Detroit has at least brought back one player from last year’s squad, according to Pride of Detroit (via Twitter). The Lions quietly re-signed veteran defensive end Darryl Tapp, and Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press reports (via Twitter) that it’s a minimum salary benefit contract with an $80K signing bonus.
Tapp, who rejoined the Lions prior to the first week of the 2014 regular season, was a part-time contributor for the team, appearing in 302 defensive snaps. With 19 tackles and 0.5 sacks, Tapp didn’t make a huge impact for the unit, but the team liked his performance well enough to lock him up again for the coming season.
Of course, as I alluded to up top, the Lions have greater concerns on their defensive line this offseason, with Suh, Nick Fairley, and others eligible for free agency next week. Bringing back Tapp is a start, but there’s still plenty of work for the club to do this month.
Lions Re-Sign Darryl Tapp
SATURDAY, 2:40pm: Tapp’s contract with the team will pay him $855,000 in base salary, and will count $570,000 agains the salary cap, reports Michael Rothstein of ESPN (via Twitter).
TUESDAY, 3:44pm: The Lions initially signed edge defender Darryl Tapp during the first week of free agency this offseason, and now the team is bringing him back during the first week of the regular season. According to Tim Twentyman of DetroitLions.com (via Twitter), the club has re-signed Tapp, placing rookie linebacker Kyle Van Noy on the injured reserve list with the designation to return in order to clear an active roster spot.
Tapp, who turns 30 this month, is coming off his least productive season, as he recorded just 10 tackles and one sack for Washington in 2013, well below his respective career highs of 55 and seven. Although he saw plenty of playing time during stints with the Seahawks and Eagles earlier in his career, Tapp probably won’t be more than a reserve defender for Detroit.
As for Van Noy, the second-round pick will be eligible to begin practicing after Week 6, and can return to game action after Week 8.